St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1887-11-26

Senator r. L. Gibson's Speech at
Monroe.
A Raioinder to Major Burke's ALE"
cations.
Grants Motives in 1877, and His Con-
fdence in General Nichols.

atiyes, o distinguished representative,
who afterwards died in the presidential
office, and with whom | served Tor years
on the committee of ways and means
came across the space that separates Inc
Republican party from the Democratic
partv and said: "Gibson, on our side
of the house we looked coidiy on tne
members on your side. we tGit at the
outset that you were unfrlendly 10 US;
that you were perhaps in your hearIs
hostile to the union of our fathers ana
the government under Wn1cn you anu
we had been reared; but as time passed
on and we became, by service on com
mittees and personal association, peIter
acquainted we have ascertalned az Ias1
that You and we are fellow country
men, that you have
THE SAME ASPIRATIONS,
the same interests, the same sentiments
in a large measure, on the questions
that relate to the government that we
ourselves cherish, though you are @
staunch Democrat and | am staunch
Republican" And so | have thought
sometimes when | came before an audi
fepce of the Democracy OF Ouachlta.
coming as | do from distant part Of
tho state, from parish bordering on
the gulf of Mexico, that there was a
feeling In Ouachita that looked coldly
upon me, that looked coldly on the
honored son Of Louisiana whom L &C
company to- day into this presence; and
VET when Won see him standing before
YOU and hear the simple recital OF his
course in life, how he went out with
YOUR brothers and sons in the great
struggle for the rights of our state;
now by the voire of the people he was
&alled to be their leader in the great
,ntest for self-governnent,
AR THE WHITE MANS GOVERNMENT,
Democracy in this state. how every
rest and every affection of his
4 kers around Louisiana, you begin to
@rhaps, you begin to realize that
aless sleeve, his shattered body IS
accident in life, but testimony
oGuent than any words that may
m human lips of his entire dtvo-
he interests and welfare Of the
Aople of this state. [Applause.l
been my fortune to have
lou always, % have said else
spOn what in one sense is called
IN service. / have been your
stlve in the senate of the
H. hates for more than four years
aany years was representa-
= = +. Rhe First district in the house
Al htatlves. In the army | was
y the state for four years like
s scholls, and have been about
rs ont of the state on duty
ton. 1t would not be proper
to me to recite the part l
= hted to bear in the trans
4 @8|43 ashington which have re-
II Many persons were par
hat occurred
vi IL WASHINGTON
ech which was perhaps the
GUS for you. and | have
~ or desired to claim for N.Y.
= cedence or any larger share
*s 1t than the performance of
h Eould bring.
nor Nichols has referred to-day
m AM TACT that Grant did not interfere
in fhe contest between himself and
Packard YIN this state all know
what tina cantest was. We kncXAkhat
Packard and us followers repress .ed
the policy of Africanizing the state.
There is no douG about that. We ali
know that GovtSnGr Nichols and his
friends represen ID the principle of q
white mans gov% nment tor this state.
That was the 1ssSe and it was settled at
that tune. / tpk occasion the other
day to refer to VI nat occurred at Wash
tions. said tAat on Jan. 2, 1877, had
an interview FiUh General Grant, ac-
companied by he secretary of war and
the general Of the United States army,
General W.T.. Sherman. / related as
thought i'll simple way what had oc-
CURED. | stated that when
GENERAL GRAFT AsCERTAINED
that General Nichols was not at the
head of o. mob in this state, but that he
was graduate of West Point and had
served with distinction in the confed-
crate army under Sionewall Jackson,
losing an arm at Winchester and leg
al Charlottesville that these facts
seemed to produce a profound impress
sion on President Grant, and at our Sec
pnd interview he turned to me and said,
well, / have wired about General
Nichols. and find that he is a man
whom think can be trusted, and pro-
pose to trust him and not to interfere in
the affairs of louisiana
l will not 3atain You by describing
the critical e. Snstlon at that time, but
I recall dist uctly that in my confer
ences with General Grant he told me
he had received a letter from Governor
Kellogg transmitting to him concur
rent resolution of the general assembly
of Louisiana, u copy OF which hold in
my hand, requesting the aid of troops
to put down violence and domestic in
surrection in the state. That commu-
nication from Kellogg was dated Jan.
!, 1877. These concurrent resolutions
of the Louisiana legislature were in
strict accordance with the constitution
of the United States. Kellogg is the
only governor who was ever
FORMALLY RECOGNIZED
by a resolution of the house OF repre-
sentatlyes of congress-. His resolutions
requesting the aid OF troops to suppress
\ .,1x
with the United States constitution and
statutes. Now suppose to-day there
was domestic lnsurrect1on in the state
Of Louisiana. Suppose the snikes in
the sugar districts had assumed such
large dimensions as to{threaten the
peace and law and orderEin the state,
and that the legislature, through it's
governor, were to request the military
interference of the government of the
UnIked States, that interference would
befaccorded by the president, but it APP
sars that on this occasion General
Grant declined to give Kellogg aid, who
was she undisputed governor. in Wash
tngton at least, OF the state, and [ re-
peat and ask thoughtful men here to re-
member that he had been recognized bv
the house of representatives I'M a formal
resolution as governor of the state.
I have no doubt there is scarcely a
gentleman in this audience who recol-
Iects that Kellogg was recognized by
the federal house, and will. tell you
how il happened. You will remember
that, in the forty-thi-d congress. the
leaders of the Republican party pro-
posed what was called the
FORCE BILL
by which four of the southern states
AZ least were to be remanded back to
the condition of military provinces. and
what were called the Blame Republl-
cans at that time in Washington Joined
with Democrats in defeating that bill.
under the leadership of Samuel j. Ran
dali, who for thirty-sIx hours stood ar
his seat conducting tine greatest parlia-
mentary battle ever fought under any
constitutional government in the world.